Saturday, November 27, 2010

The Long and Boring Road: Injury Recovery is the Pits!

"The function of the press in society is to inform, but its role in society is to make money."

A. J. Liebling

Let me start by saying, everything is calm and normal here in South Korea. It appears the US news media is having a field day with doom and gloom over the exchange of live fire, but nothing has changed for us here since the initial alert last week.

Running wise, I have had very little to blog about. The orthopedic surgeon said my foot is not yet healed so he wants me to give it 6-8 more weeks and see him again before I try running. He also told me to knock off hiking as there is too great a chance of re-injury if I step on a rock wrong or stumble on a rut. That was hard to hear as the last tolerable days of weather slip past me on our way into a dark and cold winter.

My one bright note is that I have a group of beginners that I am working with. This past week 2 moms and a gaggle of kids joined me on the outdoor track to learn how to run and love it. I’m teaching them about form and how to run slowly and smoothly to develop good habits that can keep them running for a lifetime. It was a great experience and everyone left with a smile on their face. I can’t wait for their first spring 5K! With a little luck, I will get to run it with them.

6 comments:

Hi Wendybird--It's good to hear that life is relatively normal in S. Korea in spite of the trouble coming from the north. I hope it stays that way.

Sorry that you're still waiting for recovery and that you'll have to put off hiking for the season. It sounds like the coaching you're doing is fun and satisfying though. Here's hoping you get to do that 5K come spring.

I've always hated running, and am frankly terrible at it. Would you consider writing a post with tips for people like me who'd like to try it but are sort of afraid to? I also have RA, but my feet, ankles and knees are OK right now...

I'm horrible at resting an injury as I pretend to balance my training with the healing process. I'm only running three days a week, which in my faulty mind justifys my racing with a sore hip. Indeed, injury recovery is the pits, but you're a much smarter runner than I am. I have no doubts this Spring you'll be stronger and better than ever before!

I was in Seoul in '87 during a series of riots. Unless you were on the street in question at the exact time of the "riot", you had no indication of anything going on. The footage shown then was very selective on angle.